26/02/09: Left the hostel at 7.30! Stopped at Lake Matheson for a walk around- its really beautiful because the mountains reflect off the water!! Drove on to a waterfall for a picture opportunity, then more driving to a cafe to stop for lunch. The scenery on all the drives was beautiful as we was driving in valleys by the southern alps and so there was lots of mountains with snow on top and big lakes and waterfalls running down the sides of the mountains- plus lots of lush green rainforest. We arrived in Wanaka about 3.30 and checked into the hostel- we arranged to be in a room with German Lena and American John, but no en-suites!! We did get our second night half price though which was a bargain!! Then me, lil alex and lena set off to explore the town! i needed to buy a new book and we looked in tourist information and at the big lake, but the weather was a bit miserable. We stopped at supermarket and then come back to hostel! I cooked for myself but lil alex had a bbq that the hostel were offering! We went to the bar for a drink- they had a live band playing which was quite cool.

27/02/09: Hello Uncle John- I know you are reading this!! Had a bit of a lie-in which was nice and then set off for a walk up Mount Iron with lil alex and Lena- the weather was cloudy but cleared up and was really sunny and hot from lunchtime!! The walk was a couple of hours to the top of the mountain and back- the views of the lake and other mountains was spectacular! It was so hot by the time we got back to hostel- we got changed into our swimsuits and went down to the lake- where we sunbathed and read and paddled for the rest of the day! When we booked to leave Wanaka they said they could only put us on the waiting list but today we phoned to see if we were confirmed to leave tomorrow or not and they said we were so thats a relief!! We went down to watch the sunset over the mountains and lake which was beautiful and then had tea- I had a tub of salad and lil alex had a pot noodle- typical backpackers!! We chilled all evening in the room with lena and had an early night. But we woke in the middle of the night cos there was a riot in the bar below the hostel and right outside our window- some bloke was chanting very very loudly about some being a f****** w****** and how he was going to kill him becuase he only wanted some privacy, etc! Plus there was a girl cheering him on and loads of other people shouting- trying to split it up or cheering people on. It was very scary but after a while we heard sirens and the police broke it up. But afterwards you could hear people below talking and they were obviously drugged up cos it made no sense and they were talking about ecstasy and weed and having the munchies- the worst thing was that they were all locals!